Princess & Marimo
by The Flying Lion
Summary: In a change of fate Roronoa Zoro is sent to Amazon Lily after his battle with Bartholomew Kuma and runs into the Snake Princess Boa Hancock. To get back to his crew Zoro befriends the Princess who may hold deeper feelings for him * ZoHan, AU, Taken from Honnuh*
1. A Stranger in a Strange Land

It came quick with the wave of his hand. Zoro hadn't even glanced at his friends before he felt himself vanish and the gazes of everyone in shock.

This wasn't good.

Time seemed to pass faster than he could know. Mind and thoughts rushing while feeling great pain in his bones. He didn't know where he was going as his vision blurred into lines of air and blue before going black.

He opened one eye, his vision blurred, awaking from his slumber. The sun shone brightly, above the forest greenery, and the shadow of their leaves loomed over his injured body.

_Where am I? How did I get here? Why am I in so much pain?_

'_Oh, that's right..'_

The swordsman sighed as his memories crept back to him. He remembered the Kuma cyborg that had almost killed him, and how everyone had tried to attack it... and then the real Kuma showed up and sent him flying through the sky for two days and two nights. Zoro raised a hand to his head. A look of concern mixed with pain graced his face.

'_What happened to the others? Are they ok? Did they get away safely?'_

He gritted his teeth. Too many thoughts flooded his mind. This would not do. For all he knew, his crew may of been injured really badly. He needed to get back to the Sabaody archipelago.

But... where was he anyway? He lifted his head to stare down towards his feet, wincing at the pain he felt on his neck. Stupid injuries..

He appeared to be in some kind of jungle. There were wide trees with thick vines growing in an almost perfect spiral around the trunks. The floor was covered in lush green grass, with the odd patch of mud. Various mushrooms were growing in random places around him. Those were probably poisonous. He didn't recognize this place. It was one of the rare times he was able to admit he was lost..

Holding his left arm tightly, he forced himself up, maybe a little too quickly, and took a few slow steps forwards. Unfortunately, his body was still in so much pain from the battles beforehand, and his legs gave way, causing him to fall to the floor. As his eyes closed slowly, he whispered a quiet promise before losing consciousness entirely.

"L... Luffy... Everyone..." He breathed, "...I'm sorry... I'll find you..."

* * *

"Wow, I've never seen a man this close before.."

"I've never even _seen _a man!"

"Are all men so tanned?"

"They sure have weird hair!"

"Shh! I think he's waking up!"

A low growl departed from his lips. Why could he hear so many women? He lifted his head, not feeling as much pain as he was before. It seemed he was in a jail cell of some kind with a bed, and only three walls - the fourth wall was just jail bars. Zoro blankly stared ahead at the gaggle of women gawking at him. He groggily lifted his arm to rub the back of his head, noticing he had been bandaged up.

"Oh.. I've been treated." He looked at the women. "Was it you guys? Thanks I suppose."

One of the girls with short choppy blonde hair smiled at him.

"Ah, well you see, we thought you were a girl!" Zoro scoffed, leaping out of bed, not noticing he was naked (apart from the bandages).

"A girl?! In what way do I look like one of you?"

"Well, we did think you were a bit too flat chested..." An incredibly tall women with caramel colored hair chipped in.

"The saga of that thing between your legs is so strange!" A larger woman with two pigtails spoke, which made Zoro's face turn red. He had just noticed most of the women were staring at his groin and immediately turned and hopped back into the bed.

"What the hell?! Why am I naked?! Where are my clothes?!" He continued blushing, and wrapped the bed sheet around him, making it into a makeshift kilt. He walked towards the jail bars, one hand holding the sheet tightly on himself to make sure it didn't fall off.

A thought crossed his mind suddenly.

"...Where are my swords?"

Before anyone could answer, he noticed someone holding them from just beyond the bars. He swiftly threw his arm out to grab them, pulling them into the jail cell and holding them to his bandaged chest. The crowd gasped, but didn't do anything about it.. They were his after all.

"Ah well, you were injured, and we thought you were a woman, so we decided to tend to you medically!" The blonde haired girl answered. "As for your clothes... They were covered in dirt and blood.. And they were torn all over, so we had someone make you new ones!"

The taller girl gasped and nodded, handing Zoro a bundle of clothes through the bars. "We made them a lot nicer!"

Zoro shuddered in fear when he saw the state of his clothing.

His red and white shirt had lace attached to the collar and pink hearts stuck all over the red parts. His pants and shoes were pretty much the same, apart from the black and green glitter that was shining all over them. And his haramaki... His poor defenseless haramaki.. It had been dyed bright pink.

"What.. What have you done to my clothes?!" He growled at the females, who looked shocked to his reaction.

"We made you new ones, exactly the same sizes! Oh, and we made them a bit prettier than your old ones."

He grunted in annoyance, and shoved the clothes on.

"This is ridiculous.. These clothes are ridiculous.. They're so.. _not manly_."

"The saga of he hates the clothes!" The large female gasped.

Zoro fixed his swords onto the haramaki.

_How the hell am I going to be taken seriously looking like a pink marshmallow?_

"Do you not like them?"

"I'm a man! Of course I hate th-" He paused, ceasing his yelling and he quietly face palmed himself. He was currently held captive by these people, and didn't want to start any trouble unless he had no other option. "...Ugh. Look I need to get back to Sabaody. Can I come out?"

The females looked at each other anxiously.

"Well.. I gue-" The tall girl started, but was then interrupted by a black haired woman with big purple eye makeup.

"Out of the question! You're a man! We can't allow you to live after you set foot on our island!" She glared at the other females. "We better get rid of him before the Snake Princess comes back."

Sadly, the others nodded and took out their snakes, who doubled as bows, and some arrows.

"It's better this way."

Zoro's jaw dropped. How did it go from having girly clothes being made for him to suddenly being on death row? Where the hell was he anyways?

"Wait what?! I don't even know where I am!" He frantically yelled at the women, who were about to release their arrows on him without remorse. He backed up slightly, readying himself for defense.

"Now!" The black haired woman yelled, and they all released the arrows hurtling towards Zoro.

With a quick swift movement, Zoro managed to avoid the arrows, and pulled out two of his katana.

"I'm not sticking around here! I have to get back to my crew!"

He ran towards the right wall and hurriedly slashed it with his katana. At first nothing happened, but a second later, the wall seemed to glow where his swords had hit, and it instantly crumbled down. Using this chance, Zoro ran out of the hole, and dashed away from the crazed crowd.

"He's getting away! Quickly, get him!"

He hopped onto a nearby rooftop, and continued running across the tiles, hoping to avoid the hunt that the females were currently engaged in.

A few minutes had passed, and eventually Zoro had shook them off his trail. He found himself on top of a large palace-like building.

This was so strange to him, he needed to recollect his thoughts and chill out. He sat down on top of the building and looked at the view of the village.

_No men anywhere..._

He leaned backwards and stared up to the sky. He chuckled to himself thinking how pleased the shitty cook Sanji would be if it was him here instead of Zoro. He'd be having heart attacks every minute!

He then started thinking about the rest of the crew. Usopp, Nami, Robin, Chopper, Brook, Franky, and Captain Luffy.

"Where are you guys?" he muttered under his breath, slowly drifting into a light sleep. However this was not to last as the group of women appeared.

"THERE HE IS! ON TOP OF THE PALACE!"

"GET HIM!"

Zoro shot up when he heard those familiar voices.

_'Oh crap, they found me!' _

He darted up from his laying position, and ran across the roof. Some of the women below were gasping, and others were aiming weapons at him.

The next thing that happened almost seemed as if time was slowing down. For some odd reason, Zoro's feet felt as though they were sinking rather than stepping... and then followed his whole body. Not sinking, but falling! He'd managed to step on a weak spot on the roof, and it was very rapidly crumbling beneath his weight. He was falling into the castle!

"SHIT!"

He hurtled to the ground, bracing himself for impact and holding his swords tightly in his grip. With a loud splash and a speedy attempt at regaining his footing, Zoro had the sudden realization that he was now in hot water. Literally.

There was a lot of steam surrounding him. He could make out a door shape in front of him, so he ran towards it. The closer he came to it, the more he began to realize that he was not alone.

There was a woman's figure. He cautiously continued to head towards the doorway, but when he was close enough to see her more clearly, he began to notice her more prominent features. She had a perfect hourglass figure, and her porcelain skin glistened with water vapor. She turned her face to him, her back still in his line of sight. She had bright blue eyes, which were looking right in his direction... She looked angry.

Even so, something still caught his eye.

On her back, he could see a large circle. There were three triangles on the upper side, and one on the lower. Noticing that he was staring at it intently, the woman in question flicked her silky black hair onto her back, obstructing his view any further and she grabbed herself a bathrobe. She kept her stare on Zoro, and walked backwards to exit the bath, but fell onto the steps that led out of it and towards the door.

"You saw it, didn't you?!"

Zoro stepped backwards. Who the hell was this woman?

"Your back...?" He raised an eyebrow at her question. "...Sorry about the roof, but I don't have time for this."

He attempted to run forwards, when two women crashed through the door. One had a wide face and green hair, a relatively slim figure, and the other had a larger, muscular build, with long ginger hair. Both were a lot taller than the woman Zoro had interrupted while bathing.

"Hancock! What happened?!" The green haired woman shouted worriedly. "We heard a crash!"

The other woman had noticed Zoro almost immediately, and pointed at him.

"You! How dare you interrupt the Snake Princesses bath! And how dare you even step on Amazon Lily!"

Hancock held her bathrobe tightly, her frustrated gaze fixed on Zoro, who was frozen in the commotion.

"He saw my back..."

The two women looked at each other, a glint of fear in their eyes.

"Are you sure?" The ginger female asked.

"Yes, Marigold."

Marigold looked at the green haired woman and furrowed her brow.

"Sandersonia, help me get him!"

She nodded, and the two sisters lurched towards Zoro, his injuries stinging him in the hot water as they pinned him down. Lucky for him, the water was shallow, because if not for that he probably would have been drowned too. Hancock got up from the steps, and walked towards the swordsman.

"Whoever you are, there's no way we can allow you to live after you saw the mark upon my back. As well as that, you have trespassed on our island of women, which is off limits to ALL men. For these reasons... you are to be publically executed."

Before Zoro could even edge a word in, Marigold bashed him hard on the head, causing him to pass out.

* * *

**FlyingLion: **

**Hello one and all this is the new guy in charge of this fic taken from Honnuh who has allowed anyone to continue this. The changes in the first three chapters are minor such as fixing grammatical errors and whatnot. Chapter 4 on will be entirely new content continuing the tale but for now I will add a new chapter every week so please enjoy :D**


	2. Amazon Duel

The countless cheering and screaming surrounding him was enough to wake anyone from the dead. Zoro sat on stone cold flooring, hunched over his crossed legs. He coughed and looked up from where he was seated. Encircling him were hundreds of women, who seemed to be pretty excited about something.

Between the arena Zoro was in and the seating, there was a gap. From where he was sat he couldn't quite make out how deep the gap was. Ahead of him were steps that went upwards, towards another seating area, this time occupied by the women from the bathroom - Boa Hancock and her sisters Sandersonia and Marigold.

Accompanying them was a large snake, which Hancock was using as a seat. Hancock smirked at Zoro, who at the time was trying to get up.

"Ah, so you're awake now? That's good, we can begin!"

Zoro grunted. "What do you mean by that? What's going on?"

He heaved himself up, and dusted off his trousers. Feeling as though something bad might happen, he cautiously placed a hand on one of his swords, which luckily they hadn't removed and flicked it out of its sheath with his thumb. He fixed his gaze on Hancock, who seemed to be surveying him with a look of evil satisfaction on her face.

"You have entered the Kingdom of Amazon Lily, which is off limits to all men. You also broke a jail cell and the roof of my bathhouse." Hancock started, which made all the spectating women quiet down. "For these crimes, we decided you are to be publically executed!"

Everyone cheered... Everyone except Zoro, obviously.

"Now wait just a minute, isn't that a little unreasonable? I don't even know where I am or how I got here!" Zoro quickly remembered that before the ginger haired sister - Marigold, had knocked him out there, he was also being executed for seeing that mark on Hancock's back.

He smirked. "All this because I saw that _thing _on your back?" Hancock bit her lip in anger. He was pressing her buttons, and he knew it.

They needed to get rid of him.

"Bacura!" She called out. A large black panther walked into the arena Zoro was stood in, and walked behind him, snarling at the green haired swordsman. Zoro turned to face the beast, not even phased in the slightest way. He pulled out all of his swords, and before placing Wado Ichimonji between his teeth, he gave the princess a stupid grin.

"And what is this?" He said, biting down on the katana.

"This, you poor unfortunate man, is Bacura," She let out a short cackle, before continuing.

"...Bacura has been serving the Kuja tribe for generations as the executioner of Amazon Lily."

Bacura paced around the swordsman, letting out low grunts as it glared at Zoro with gleaming red and yellow eyes. To any normal man, this would be staring death in the face.

But Zoro was no normal man.

There were countless things much more terrifying than this pitiful monster that he had defeated. No way was he going to let some overgrown kitty cat kill him... He still needed to fulfill his dream of becoming the world's greatest swordsman. Taking down this beast would be easy enough for him.

"Bacura, go ahead and kill him now." Hancock sneered, lifting one leg over the other and resting her arm on the side of the large snake she had been sat on. She then lay her head on her hand and smiled maliciously.

Zoro sighed, and jumped backwards, the beast in front of him getting ready for the kill. It roared at an almighty volume and dashed towards Zoro. Zoro also ran towards the beast, yelling an attack.

"Santoryu oni giri!"

With a quick leap, Zoro jumped at the beasts face, slashing the two swords in his hands and jerking his head so the third hit the monster too. He landed on the floor, unharmed, whereas Bacura had been sent flying due to the strength of Zoro's attack.

The Boa sisters and all the other females gasped in horror. Never had they seen such strength! No one had ever defeated Bacura. A look of anxiety presented itself on Hancock's face.

"Can I go now or what?" Zoro yelled, staring at the sisters whilst tapping his foot impatiently on the floor. The audience gasped. How could anyone speak to the snake princess and her sisters like that?!

"Sister.." Marigold started, before Sandersonia chipped in

"What should we do now? This could be troublesome." The two sisters of the princess really didn't need to ask, they knew what would happen next.

"Both of you, get down there and rip him up." Hancock clenched her fists and chewed her bottom lip. Marigold and Sandersonia gazed at their beloved sister in concern. It wasn't like Hancock to become this stressed. Obviously this guy was really strong, and Hancock definitely didn't want to be made a fool of in front of the whole kingdom.

The two sisters reluctantly walked past Hancock and down the steps towards Zoro, who was obviously getting bored of this charade.

"Marigold, we can beat him, right?"

Marigold and Sandersonia exchanged a look of fear between themselves. This guy was pretty strong, plus he had three katana... It wasn't going to be an ordinary battle.

"I don't know. We just can't allow our sister to be made a fool," she paused. "C'mon, let's show this bastard real strength!"

Zoro groaned as he watched the two large sisters walk down the stairway from where the Princess was sat. She seemed to be smugly looking down at him. The audience roared with excitement as Marigold and Sandersonia got closer. Zoro wasn't a complete idiot. He realized that if these two girls were sent down after the supposed executioner of the island, these two would be stronger. He just needed to know if it was a little more or a lot more stronger.

When Marigold and Sandersonia had got to the arena, they shot a sly grin at Zoro, Sandersonia sticking out her tongue, which happened to be fairly long and slim.

"Seems to be your unlucky day, swordsman!" She said sarcastically, twirling a lock of her sea green hair around her finger. "Wait till yo-"

"If we're going to fight, can we just hurry it up? I feel like a nap." Zoro cut her off, making Marigold rage. Zoro grunted and looked away in annoyance. Stupid women, thinking he was going to allow himself to be defeated.

"How dare you interrupt us whilst we talk!" She bellowed, screwing her face up.

"Hebi Hebi no Mi, Model King Cobra!"

Zoro watched the larger sister change her physical appearance by transforming herself to appear more snake like. Her skin grew scaly and now had a yellow hue to it. As well as this, her legs had been replaced by a large tail - just like a snakes. The back of this tail was a darker shade of yellow, with lighter orange colored spots. He kept a fairly bored expression plastered on his face, but secretly he was genuinely shocked. He imagined the Marigold would have abnormal strength anyway but a devil fruit ability, well.. This fight could be interesting. Placing Wado Ichimonji back into his mouth, he tightened his grip on the two swords he was already holding. He was ready. A sudden whining from Sandersonia interrupted.

"Aw, don't start without me, sister!"

Zoro turned to Sandersonia, who still had her tongue sticking out of the mouth, which appeared to be smirking.

"Hebi Hebi no Mi, Model: Anaconda!"

Sandersonia's body was now transforming. It was pretty much the same as Marigold, except her freshly scaled skin was a bluey-green shade. The back of her tail had a dark green colour, with even darker green diamond outline shapes in a neat pattern all over.

Zoro still kept the unaffected look upon his face, and let out a "Meh." through his katana stuffed mouth. He didn't want to show it, but he was genuinely worried. The fight he had with Kaku, who was also a Zoan fruit user, was fairly difficult and time consuming. Unless these two sisters were awful at fighting, which he highly doubted considering the loud cheers the sisters had when they stepped into the arena, this was going to take some patience and brains.

'_So much effort... All I want to do is get off this stupid island.'_

Zoro suddenly sensed something odd, as if something was hurtling towards him, and without even thinking twice, he swiftly dashed from where he was originally stood, and had move now to one side of the arena.

A loud smash noise emerged from the spot he was previously stood in. When he had the chance to look, he realised that whilst he was witnessing Sandersonia's transformation, Marigold had equipped herself with some kind of spear weapon and had almost hit him with it. He started having a similar feeling to before, and jumped backwards onto the railing of the arena, and dashed around to the other side. Sandersonia had tried to smack Zoro with her tail. The floor that her tail had hit was now shattered and covered in cracks and broken bits of stone. Zoro really couldn't let himself be hit, especially since he was already recovering from his previous injuries. The swordsman swiftly jumped out of the way of more attacks from the sisters.

This continued for about 20 minutes straight. They all had great stamina but Zoro's was somewhat greater, as well as his perseverance. Eventually, Zoro was getting bored of this dumb fight with the sisters and stood still in the middle of the arena, where he could potentially be hit in an instant.

"Oi. Surely this is a waste of time? Clearly you're not going to hit me." He gave them a cocky grin.

The two sisters looked at each other in confusion. Surely he knew they could easily plummet their tails onto him, crushing him in an instant. His attitude enraged Marigold, who pushed Sandersonia out of the way to swing her weapon at him.

"You arrogant little man!"

Zoro's plan had worked like a charm. As Sandersonia fell backwards, he jumped at her back. This would only work well if she also had the same mark as Hancock. If these women were anything like Hancock, they would fear their back being shown. With a quick slice, Zoro managed to cut the back of her shirt, making it fall off. She landed awkwardly, her hands clinging to the part of the arena the audience were sat in, her tail on the arena they were fighting on, and her body hanging over what Zoro could now see, was a pit of spikes.

Zoro stood on Sandersonia's lower back sure enough, she had a mark identical to Hancock's. Luckily her hair was covering it enough so that none of the audience could even see it. He jumped on her back exactly where it was, and took off his Haramaki. Marigold's gasp was synchronized with Hancock's own gasp.

"Get off me! Marigold! Get him off me!" Sandersonia pleaded, not realizing what was being exposed.

"S-Sandersonia... He's actually..." Marigold could barely finish, but Sandersonia suddenly realized what was going on when she could see her shredded top impaled on one of the spikes below her. Zoro sat down on her mark, his legs crossed, making sure it was covered completely. He let out a yawn - his personal sign of triumph.

Hancock glared at him. Who the hell did he think he was?

"EVERYONE, GET OUT. LEAVE THE ARENA NOW."

A slight twang of fear was laced amongst her voice.

The audience scurried out of the seating area, muttering and wailing. All of them left rather quickly and Zoro looked around to make sure no one was looking.

"Listen, I don't want to fight or hurt anyone."

He walked off of Sandersonia's back when he was certain everyone had left, and threw his pretty pink haramaki the girls had made him before to Marigold.

"Help her up, I won't look." He blushed when he realized how weird he must of looked wearing a pink haramaki. "She can wear that."

Marigold nodded and went to help her sister up. Hancock walked down the stairs, her ice cold stare locked on Zoro. He looked back at her, watching her gracefully step towards him.

'_She is kinda pretty - beautiful even...'_ Zoro erased the thoughts. _'What am I thinking? This damn woman still tried to execute me...'_ He gave her a cocky grin.

This woman was tough.

Even if he hadn't fought her personally he could tell there was more to her than just a pretty face and a stone cold heart.

"Do you think maybe we can just talk now? I have no intention of fighting with anyone. Please just allow me to explain myself," He paused. She was royalty right? Maybe being a bit more courteous like that shitty cook would give them a reason to accept him. "... your highness." He bowed, lowering one of his knees so he was half knelt below her.

'This is really weird, no wonder only curly brow does this..'

Hancock blushed. She didn't want to admit it but she found his strength somewhat attractive. The fact he was bowing too, she didn't even realize, but not all men had bad intentions. She looked down on Zoro and gave a weak smile. His efforts were very admirable.

"What is your name, man."

"Roronoa Zoro, your highness."

Zoro... She had heard that name before... But where from? She thought for a moment, looking at his moss green hair. She wondered what it might feel like... soft and fluffy, or rough and smothered in gel... Her train of thought was going way off topic and suddenly, she remembered how she had heard of Zoro.

"Pirate hunter Roronoa Zoro?" She was certain this is how she recognized the name, after all, Pirate Hunter Zoro was famed for his use of santoryu..

"That's what they called me." He sighed and got up from the floor rubbing his hair.

Hancock nodded. She wasn't really phased by the fact he was the infamous pirate hunter, she just felt proud of the fact she recognized the name.

Sandersonia, now dressed in Zoro's super-feminine pink haramaki, and Marigold had both transformed back into their human forms and walked towards their sister and Zoro. Sandersonia looked away from Zoro.

"Thanks for this." She pointed at the Haramaki.

"Keep it, I don't like it. Pink is a girls colour." He shuddered, looking at the pink haramaki. It's lucky he wore it, or else he would've never thought up this plan, but still... He must of looked ridiculous in that _thing._

Sandersonia nodded and thanked him once more. Marigold did the same and walked her green haired sister upstairs.

Hancock turned away from Zoro, a blush forming on her face. Although it was his fault her back was nearly exposed, she figured that was a kind thing for him to do, even though they had tried to execute him.

"Um... Zoro, please come with me to the palace." She walked up the stairs without turning to him. She didn't want him to see her blush!

Zoro simply shoved his hands over his shirt, forgetting he had no haramaki to tuck them into, and sighed, shoving them in his trouser pockets instead. He was just happy he could finally stop running and fighting for a minute or two.

"As you wish Hancock."

"It's Princess to you!" She barked, trying to defend her status as the heartless princess.

Zoro let out a short "Heh!" before addressing her formally.

"Apologies, Princess!" He mocked, stretching both his arms behind his head.

* * *

**FlyingLion:**

**Okay and here is chapter two for you all, once again not much changes other than restructuring and correcting grammar but other than that the same. Like I said Chapter Four begins completely fresh though Chapter 3 might be edited even more and show what the other Straw Hats-namely Luffy- are up to since the original author never got far enough to do that so please look forward.**

**Also check out my other fics as I write most of these several at a time and work hard to update them. **


	3. Secrets of a Snake

Upon entry to the palace, Zoro was as well as the Princess and her sisters, greeted by rows of palace servants.

"Welcome back Snake Princess!"

"Welcome back, sisters of the Princess!"

"Welcome to the palace, guest of the Princess!"

Zoro walked behind the three sisters, wincing at the servants cheerful attitudes. Overly happy people really irritated him, which is probably why even though she tried to execute him, he didn't completely hate Hancock. She was a very determined and powerful woman, and this quality of hers reminded him of his childhood friend Kuina. There were more important things for him to think about right now. A number of things actually...

He needed to somehow get back to Sabaody Archipelago, and therefore needed to get on Hancocks good side if he wanted an escort there.

Although he didn't show it, his injuries were really hurting as they had still not fully healed.

In what state were his crew? Were they injured at all? Did they all get separated too?

Hancock had a really nice ass.

Wait.. _what?!_

Suddenly, coming back from his thoughts, he realised that whilst walking behind Hancock, he had been subconsciously staring at her derriere. In embarrassment, he quickly looked to the side, putting one of his arms behind his head and the other shoved into his pocket.

'_I seriously hope no one saw that... damn.' _he thought, trying to maintain a look of boredom.

What was up with him today? He'd never cared much for attractive women, and had definitely never had interest in them. For a long time the only thing he had ever thought about was becoming the worlds greatest swordsman and defeating his rival - 'Hawk-Eyes' Mihawk, the current worlds greatest swordsman, and one of the Shichibukai.

Why is it that all of a sudden, he starts noticing how beautiful one woman is. Dear God... Was he turning into Sanji?

The thought of him becoming like that damn Chef made him gag. As if Zoro would ever act like that dumb blonde. He muttered a small laugh under his breath, which made Hancock turn around and stare at him.

Hancock, not knowing what had made him give out a small chuckle, gave him a look of confusion. No one had been talking on the way, so there wasn't anything remotely funny for him to even laugh at. She sighed and looked forward again, to find they were in the throne room.

"We're here. Please, sit down, I'll call you in here in a moment." She motioned towards some cushions on the floor and went behind a glossy curtain.

Zoro, bewildered to what was even occurring simply stood staring at the curtain. He needed to ask her for a boat now! He had no time to wait around. Marigold and Sandersonia, who had already sat down, noticed the pondering swordsman still stood up.

"Sit down! Have some respect." Marigold said, yanking him down by his shirt, causing him to land on the cushion with his back on the pillow, one leg in the air and both of his arms flailing about.

"Calm down lady! I was going to!" He screeched at Marigold, as he tried to sit back upright from the awkward position he was in. Sandersonia simply laughed at the swordsman, watching him struggle was fairly entertaining.

Suddenly, a deep breath could be heard from the other side of the curtain.

"Ok, you can come in now."

Zoro, who had just straightened himself on the cushion sighed. He had just gotten comfy too. Oh well. He stood up and walked towards the curtain.

"Go through the curtains, but make sure its shut completely behind you!" Sandersonia exclaimed, worried that anyone would happen to notice anything.

Zoro grunted. "I'm not stupid! Obviously I'm going to shut it!" He said, walking straight past the curtain.

"You're meant to go in through the curtains..."

Zoro blushed and shot Sandersonia a glare. "You could've said that before!" He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked through the curtains. "You need to make your directions more clear!" He pulled the curtain closed fast in annoyance.

"Wow, are all men like that?"

"Yes Sandersonia, I guess they're all pretty stupid."

Sighing, he turned away from the curtains. It was very dim in this a few lights were dotted around.

"Hancock?"

"Over here."

He turned to where her voice was coming from and when he saw the sight before him, he couldn't believe it.

There sat Boa Hancock, her back facing him, completely nude.

Zoro's jaw dropped, and a dark red blush emerging on his face.

"W-Why are you naked?!"

He turned his head away, his one hand in his pocket and the other frantically rubbing the back of his head. Damn, how did it come to this? About 10 minutes ago he was ordered to be executed by this woman, and now she want's him to see her naked? He could feel himself getting aroused, but being the strong willed man he was, he did his very best to not let her naked form get the better of him.

Hancock noticed him looking away. She pouted and flicked her long black hair off her back. She furrowed her brow.

"Just look at me." she commanded.

Zoro made a gruff sigh and slowly turned to face her. When his eyes met her back, he let out a deep breath. No longer was he noticing her beauty... His full attention was focused on that scar.

"Zoro, are you curious as to what this is?"

She looked over her shoulder, seeing the swordsman sat on the floor out of the corner of her eye. She was afraid. Afraid that he was going to tell everyone what the mark on her back was, afraid he would find it ugly, afraid something bad would happen if she explained the story to him. She figured it was a bit late now to back out, considering here she was, sat naked in front of the swordsman, with the intention of telling him about the scar.

Zoro stood up, and nodded.

"Yeah, I am." He figured already that this would be some kind of tragic story but he would listen anyway.

"...It's the mark of the Celestial Dragons."

Hancock chewed her lip. Even those words alone made her feel sick to her stomach.

Zoro grunted in disgust.

"The Celestial Dragons... Those guys... Before I came here I was fighting them with my crew."

Hancock gasped and looked at him in shock.

"You were fighting them?!"

"Yeah, I'll explain after you. I don't want to interrupt."

Hancock nodded, and turned away again.

"When I was a lot younger, me, Marigold and Sandersonia were kidnapped by slave traders, and were then sold to the Celestial Dragons." Her eyes watered as she recalled the memories.

"They forced us to eat devil fruit for their entertainment." Realising Zoro hadn't even seen her ability, she quickly blew a kiss in front of her, making a small heart appear. She then pointed a finger onto it and gently flung it towards a pillow. Because she didn't use all her force with it, it didn't do any damage, it simply made the pillow crash into the wall.

Zoro lifted both of his hands behind his head to stretch. So she was force fed a devil fruit. Big whoop.

"Anyway, moving on." Hancock continued, playing with the hair that she has brought over her shoulder. "This mark... It's the mark of the Celestial Dragons."

She bit her bottom lip. She couldn't believe she was telling Zoro this much.

"This is the mark given to the slaves of the Celestial Dragons."

Memories from her time as a slave to the Celestial Dragons flooded her mind. She could feel herself wanting to cry, but lifted her head up to look at the ceiling. She couldn't cry in front of a man. She was the ruler of this island. What would anyone think of her if they knew she had so much as shed a tear in front of some man.

"But then one day, me, my sisters and a whole bunch of other slaves were freed by a man named Fisher Tiger." She smiled. "He had set out to just free the fishman slaves, but had saved all of us as well. Human or not." She remembered the traumatic day, a blank expression on her face. "He burned down the houses slaves were in, and we all escaped." There was so much she wished she could thank this man for. Once again, the urge to cry was getting stronger and stronger. She bit her lip and continued looking upwards.

The next thing she knew, a rough hand had placed itself onto her back.

She let out a tiny gasp as the hand traced the area in which her brand was placed. Although it was somewhat distressing, funnily enough it felt soothing and no longer did she feel the need to cry.

Zoro was examining the mark on her back. He was no stranger to scars. He had many to boast about. Something about this scar filled him with anger. He wasn't sure why, but he wanted to do something about it. He clenched his fist, and drew his right hand away from her back, clenching that one too.

"The Celestial Dragons... Before I wound up on this Island, me and my Nakama were trying to save someone we had met that day who had been kidnapped by slave traders." He thought back to that day, where Camie had been helplessly floating inside what appeared to be a large fish bowl.

He gritted his teeth.

"They're cowards. Fancy cowards. They think they're all that just because they have money." He growled and turned away from Hancock, walking towards the curtain.

"I hate cowards. Therefore I must _really_ hate them... Biggest cowards of the lot."

Hancock turned to face him, but he was already at the curtains. He was about to exit, when he stopped. Still not facing her, he muttered three words, which would shock anyone who personally knew the swordsman well.

"...You're still beautiful."

Hancock silently gasped, her jaw dropped loosely. Zoro then continued out of the curtains, remembering to shut them completely.

She sat there, still in awe at the words he had said. That was a bit strange for someone like him to say. She had Zoro down as an ass. Who knew the cocky swordsman could be so kind.

Zoro on the other hand, was feeling very odd about himself. Did he honestly just say that?

What was he thinking?!

He paused on the other side of the curtain.

That's right, he wasn't thinking.

He was simply stating what he was thinking on impulse. Something he never did. This woman was making him act weird. Really weird. He shook the feeling and was about to progress walking, when a shy voice emerged from the curtains.

"Zoro? Are you hungry? You can go down to the dining hall if you want."

Zoro was about to decline the offer when he heard a rumble in his belly. _'Perfect timing stomach.'_

"Food sounds great. I'll go there now, thanks."

He headed off to the left corridor from the room, not even asking where the dining hall was.

"It's straight down the way we came, by the way, so just go forwards, not left or right!"

Immediately turning on his heels Zoro made his way back down the corridor they had come from, raising a hand as if to wave, even though the Princess couldn't even see.

"Yeah, I knew that!" He growled in embarrassment. Trust him to go the wrong way. "See you later."

He decided to ask for a ship later on. His injuries were still hurting him quite a bit and he really wanted to satisfy his hunger pangs. Zoro figured now wasn't a good time to ask Hancock for anything, considering she had just told him such an emotional story. He would drop by later if he could... If he could find his way back, that is!

The Snake Princess, still sat in the closed off area, hugged her knees. She could cry all she wanted now if she really felt like it. But for some reason, she wasn't feeling sad anymore. In fact, she was feeling an odd sensation in her chest. Whatever it was, she didn't feel right. As soon as she was certain Zoro had left, she put her clothes back on, and walked out of the curtains. She clutched her chest and sighed loudly, dramatically falling to the floor with a loud thud.

_Doki..._

"Sister? Are yo- Hancock!"

Sandersonia had heard the Princess landing on the floor and had come to investigate. She ran to her sister, calling Marigold in, and held her fainting sister up slightly.

Hancock lifted one of the chest clutching hands to hover over her forehead.

"Sandersonia.. I feel so... My chest... It really hurts!"

Zoro felt very uncomfortable. Very uncomfortable indeed. He was sat in the dining hall, eating his favourite food - Onigiri.

None of the women wanted to kill him, which was brilliant... But the stares he was receiving whilst he ate were just off putting, to say the least. All the women were looking at him with facial expressions similar to a goldfish as he munched the rice balls. He felt somewhat shy, as all eyes pointed at him.

'_What is with these women? Never seen someone eat a rice ball?'_

Overcome with embarrassment, Zoro stood up, making the women gasp. He took his bandana off his arm and put the remainder of his onigiri in the center, folding each corner upwards and tieing it to make some form of makeshift bag.

"You people are scaring me, can't a man eat his onigiri in peace?!"

He walked away from the dining hall, muttering to himself in annoyance. He hoped he would find some nice rooftop to relax on.

"No! Zoro-kun! Tell us more about what men are like!"

"Yes, we want to see the sacks between your legs again!"

"Ahh, Zoro please come back! There's more onigiri for you!"

Zoro took a step backwards, staring at the women who suddenly had more interest in him.

"OI, LEAVE ME ALONE!" He started running away, clutching the bandana bag of onigiri with all his might. There was no way he was losing that! Jumping on a rooftop, he turned to them, his legs sprawled apart so he could continue running after, and both arms raised in the air, shaking his one fist angrily.

"AND YOU ARE NOT LOOKING AT MY BALLS THANK YOU VERY MUCH! BAKA!"

Turning on his heels, he quickly hopped from rooftop to rooftop, until he felt he was far enough from the insane women. Jumping down from the roof, he found himself in front of a quiet cafe. For a minute he contemplated going in or continuing to run away from the women, but the choice was made for him by a small old lady.

"You there! Are you Roronyona Zoro?!"

Zoro winced at her mispronunciations. His surname wasn't _that _difficult to say.

"It's Roronoa, and what's it to you?"

She gasped and turned the newspaper she was reading to him.

"This is you! Nyou have a bounty of 120,000,000!"

Zoro turned to face her, lightly tapping his foot.

"And...?"

"Where are the rest of nyour nakama? Shouldn't you be with them?"

"Oi, I need to talk to Hancock about that. Have you heard of a man named Bartholomew Kuma?" He stretched one of his arms, and walked up the little steps to sit with the old lady. He placed the bandana of onigiri down.

"He is a shichibukai, nyes? Just like Hebihime-sama." Nyon enquired, folding the newspaper up and setting it beside the onigiri.

"Hancocks a shichibukai?" He was shocked, but let out a gruff 'heh'. It seemed this woman was way more than just a pretty face. "How surprising. Ah, yeah, back to Kuma..."

For a while he spoke to elder Nyon about the incident back at Sabaody Archipelago. He allowed Nyon to feast on the onigiri, only because she seemed wise enough to not go chasing after his 'kintama' as Luffy so famously called them. Plus it seemed she was familiar with the Snake Princess. After telling the tale and finishing off the onigiri, Nyon spoke.

"So what nyou're saying is... You ended up here with nyo intention of harming anynyone, and need to get back to nyour nyakama?" Her mispronunciations were really getting on his nerves, but he nodded anyway.

"Well why didn't nyou tell anyone sooner?!" She stood up on her chair, making her head level with his torso. Zoro realised she was actually a very small lady and couldn't help but make a little laughter.

"Heh, I decided maybe it would be more convenient to ask in the morning." He remembered how sad she had sounded when she was explaining her situation with the mark on her back. He was nice enough to wait for her to relax a little before he asked her.

"Nyope! We'll have nyone of that! Come on, Roronyona! We shall speak to the Princess now!" She said, jumping off her seat, and picking up a wooden staff she had left by the side of her chair. She walked past Zoro who was reluctant to go, and whacked his knee with the staff.

"Oi, Oba-san, watch it!"

"Hurry up then. nyoung man."

He sat up immediately, rubbing his knee furiously. That old lady had some fight in her!

Back at the palace, Nyon and Zoro made their way up to Hancocks room. As they got to the door, a young woman ran towards the door from a corridor to the left.

"You can't go in! Hebihime-sama is sick!"

Zoro tilted his head in suspicion. She was fine two hours ago...

"Enishida, move! Let me in!" Nyon whacked her with her staff and marched into the room. Zoro had gone to follow her, but Enishida managed to stand before him.

"Can you please wait here? We don't want to stress Hancock-sama out!" Zoro agreed. It's not like he wanted to come barging in asking for a ship anyway. It was Elder Nyon who had forced him up here.

"Sure, I'll just wait here. I have nothing else to do anyway." He said walking to a lavish sofa nearby and lay down on it. Seconds later, he was asleep.

Enishida blinked in surprise at the sleeping man. _'Men are so strange...'_

She hurried herself back into Hancocks room, and gently shut the door behind her, in an attempt not to wake the sleeping swordsman.

Inside Hancocks room stood Marigold Sandersonia, Nyon, Enishida and Belladonna (the islands doctor) surrounding the ill princess. Hancock lay on a futon, the cover sprawled all over her. She was breathing very heavily and had one fist curled up on her chest. Every now and then a small whimper would escape her lips. Nyon walked up to Hancock, and looked up at Belladonna.

"Do you know what is wrong with her?"

Belladonna shook her head.

"We've tried all we can, but nothing seems to be helping her."

Nyon sighed and continued staring at the young princess helplessly fighting her illness. If Nyon was correct, this pain could only be one thing. A long time ago, Nyon herself had experienced this sickness, and was sure that Hancock was enduring the exact same one.

"I was just talking with Zoro."

Hancock gasped loudly and made a loud whining noise, whereas elder Nyon smirked. _'Just to make sure...'_ She cleared her throat quickly.

"...Zo-"

"KYAA!"

Hancock was shaking her head back and forth, almost to the point of tears. It was clear that she was experiencing pain.. Longing pain.

"Heh. Hancock, when nyou're well again, someone outside would like to talk to nyou." She smirked. "It's Zoro!"

Marigold frowned. "Nyon, can you not see that our sister is in pain right now? He's going to have to wait!"

"No."

Hancock stood up, appearing to have suddenly recovered miraculously. Everyone, apart from Nyon, stared at her in astonishment.

"It's fine! I'm fine! I'll go talk to him now!"

Still gobsmacked, everyone watched the princess leave her room to go talk to Zoro.

"I'll be on the lower balcony if anyone needs me."

Once she had shut the door behind her, Nyon looked to the two sisters.

"I figured out what is wrong with Hancock." She nodded. Marigold and Sandersonia looked at each other in unison, and then back at the elder.

"What's wrong with her?!" Sandersonia pleaded.

"She's suffering from love sickness." Nyon pointed at a nearby window. "Come have a look for yourself."

The three of them shuffled to the window, Marigold quickly dismissing Enishida and Belladonna.

"Ah, there they are nyow!"

Hancock exited the room to find Zoro taking a nap on a sofa in the corridor. Slowly she walked up to him. She didn't want to wake him up immediately, just observe him.

He looked adorable as he slept. Cautiously, she knelt down in front of him. For some strange reason all she wanted to do was watch him as he napped with her bright blue eyes, which were slowly becoming more and more dilate. She took in a deep breath, about to make an attempt to wake up the sleepy green haired man, but before a sound could even be made, he opened one of his eyes.

"Oh, you're alright."

Blushing, Hancock stood up, dusting her knees.

"Yes, well, Nyon said you wanted to see me. Lets go talk on the balcony."

Zoro nodded, and lazily sat up, stretching his arms and yawning. Hancock couldn't help but admire his giant, muscular arms. She allowed her jaw to drop just a tiny bit as he stood up, running one of his hands through his spiky green hair.

"Oi, lets go."

He started walking away from Hancock, but was quickly stopped by her hands which had latched onto his arm. For a moment, the two stopped moving and stood staring at each other. It was an awkward scenario, Hancock invading Zoro's personal space like that, but Zoro didn't mind. For some reason, he wasn't phased by her getting so close to him. In fact he quite enjoyed it.

Realising what she had just done Hancock let go in bashfulness and turned around.

"You're going the wrong way! Just follow me, its this way..."

Zoro shoved his hands into his pockets, and looked away in frustration. Why did the balcony have to suddenly move? He was sure he was going the right way! But then again, he enjoyed the feeling of Hancock's skin against his. He found the way she acted around him quite endearing.

When they had arrived on the balcony, Hancock walked over to the railing to look over her island. She loved how at night time, the atmosphere was so peaceful compared to how it is during the day. Turning to Zoro, she smiled and beckoned him to come near her.

"So what is it you wanted to see me about?"

Zoro rubbed his forehead and walked over to her, slumping over slightly. He leant his back on the railing of the balcony and tilted his head back.

"If its not too much trouble, I need to go somewhere."

Hancock's heart sank. Was he leaving so soon? A small lump formed in her throat.

"Where do you need to go?"

"Sabaody Archipelago."

The lump felt as if it was getting bigger, as she nodded.

"May I ask... Why do you need to go there?"

Zoro lifted his head back down to look at her, a cocky smirk appearing on his face.

"Oi, oi, oi, oi... Don't tell me you've forgotten? I swear I mentioned it a million times already!"

Hancock's face reddened.

"Um.. Sorry, what was the reason?"

Zoro closed his eyes still maintaining the grin on his face.

"I need to reunite with my nakama."

Hancock could feel her heart shattering. Although the time they spent together was very short lived, she couldn't help but feel immensely saddened at the thought of Zoro's depart. Forcing a smile on her face, she smiled and nodded.

"... So why do you need to tell me this?"

Zoro's smile dropped from his face. He looked hancock straight in her bright blue eyes. He knew he felt some kind of feelings for her, and asking her this question would kill him. But he had to do it for his crew, for Luffy. He had to do it to help everyones dreams come true.

"... Hancock, I need to get to Sabaody Archipelago as soon as possible."

He exhaled deeply.

"What I'm asking is... Can you take me there on your ship?"

Her chest started painfully aching. Resisting the urge to cry out loud, she faked a smile.

"Of course, Zoro. Anything for you... I'd be happy to take you there!"

She quickly pushed away from the railing and walked past him. Before her chest was too painful to endure, she thought of a brilliant idea.

"... On one condition."

Zoro hauled himself off the balcony, and looked over at the Princess suspiciously.

"Go on...?"

Butterflies fluttered around her tummy. Hopefully he wouldn't object to her condition if he did, who knows what she would do.

"You are to stay here on Amazon Lily until you are fully healed." She turned and pointed to his chest. "Your wounds are still open for heavens sake!"

If any other person had suggested the idea, Zoro would of scowled in their face and told them to buzz off. He was strong enough to ignore pain, he always thought anyone who couldn't hide their pain was weak. But Hancock wanted him to stay. He wasn't stupid, he could tell. He figured out that maybe she liked him, alot. Or maybe she just wanted to know more about him.

Whatever the case, he knew that regardless of her feelings, he felt a definite attraction towards her, not just appearance wise. He had come to enjoy the type of woman she was. Strong, fearless, a true leader. Independent, yet, somewhat partial to being around him.

He walked over to the Princess and stood close to her, his hands holding both of her upper arms.

"As you wish, Hancock."

Hancock froze. His rough hands had her locked where she was, and she couldn't bring herself to move. For 10 seconds, they just stared deep into each others eyes, enjoying the moment while it lasted.

To her dismay, that moment didn't last long, as the swordsman let go of her. Folding his arms, he furrowed his brow, as if concerned about something.

"Oi, Princess. Where am I sleeping?"

Hancocks eyes glistened. Was he... implying something? No, no he couldn't be!

"Ah, you can stay in a guest room. I'll put you in the nicest one nearest to my room, Zoro-Kun."

"Appreciate it. Thanks."

Happy that Zoro would be staying with her for longer, Hancock took him to the guest room, which was 3 doors away from her room. the two rooms closes to Hancocks room were those that belonged to her sisters. The rest of the rooms after Zoro's belonged to staff or were just guest rooms. Zoro bid the Princess goodnight, and shut the door behind him, stripping himself of his clothes (apart from his boxers) and laying himself down on his bed. Looking out of the window, he started thinking about the Strawhats.

What would they say if they knew he was purposely elongating his time on Amazon Lily? What if they needed him right now? The immense feeling of guilt was taking over his mind.

"Please stay Zoro, just a little longer!"

He heard a small feminine voice from the corners of his mind. No doubt it was Hancocks voice. He didn't want to just leave her... He couldn't. He smirked as he turned himself over, sliding one hand under his pillow.

'_I'm gonna be a little late guys. I'll be there soon. Just wait for me.'_

* * *

**FlyingLion:**

**Here is chapter three for you all and you'll notice that there is no change which is due to the fact that I'm working more so on the new content. I feel bad though because I really want to post new content instead of what was in the original release but I am working on it. It's just at the moment I've suddenly been given a dog and now have to take care of him, his name is Luca by the way and he's a black labrador. **

***AHEM* But next chapter will focus on Luffy on Kuraigana Island and his little adventure with Perona. So look forward to that and I bid you adieu~**


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